DAILY GK UPDATE 2 - 3rd JUNE

1.    PrePex: Device to slow AIDS spread 

i. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has approved a first-of-its-kind, non-surgical circumcision device PrePex to forestall the spread of AIDS. 

ii. According to The New York Times:  The PrePex is the only circumcision method, aside from conventional surgery, to gain approval from the international health organization.

iii. It is said that circumcision lowers the chance of a heterosexual male contracting HIV or the virus that causes AIDS, through sexual intercourse by about 60 percent.

iv. A two-nurse team reportedly employs the PrePex to kill off a male's foreskin through the utilization of a rubber band. The procedure, according to The Times, necessitates only topical anesthesia, and is safer than surgery.

v. The device was developed by Circ MedTech an Irsaeli company founded in 2009,

2.    Rami Hamdallah New Prime Minister of Palestine 

i. The President of Palestine, Mahmoud Abbas named Rami Hamdallah as new Prime Minister of  Palestine .

ii. Rami Hamdallah replaced Western-favoured economist Salam Fayyad who had left the office of Prime Minister in April 2013

iii. Rami Hamdallah is a member of Fatah Palestinian National Authority which is headed by Mahmoud Abbas.

iv. He also served as secretary general of the Palestinian central elections commission.

3.    RBI issues clarification on new banks license 

i. The Reserve Bank on Monday said in- principle approval for setting up of new banks will now be valid for 18 months, up from earlier proposed one year.

ii. Issuing clarification to queries on new bank licences, the RBI on Monday said the companies which would be eligible to apply must have a public shareholding of at least 51 percent.

iii.Those seeking to set up a bank would have to submit applications by 1^st July, 2013.

iv. The norms issued by the RBI after a gap of more than a decade is expected to see companies like Mahindra & Mahindra, Tatas, Anil Ambani Group and Religare queuing up for a bank licence.

v. RBI said: "Companies forming part of the Promoter Group whereof companies in which the public hold not less than 51 per cent of the voting equity shares shall hold not less than 51 per cent of the total voting equity shares of the NOFHC (holding company)”

vi. It further said only non-financial services companies and non-operative financial holding companies in the promoter Group would be allowed to hold shares in the holding company.

4.    Sudha Sharma: New CBDT chief 

i. Senior IRS officer Sudha Sharma has been appointed as the new Chairperson of the Central Board of Direct Taxes in the Finance Ministry. 

ii. Sharma, a 1976-batch Indian Revenue Service officer, has been given the charge after incumbent Poonam Kishore Saxena retired on 31 May

iii. She was till now serving as a member (Legislation and Computerisation) in the seven-member CBDT, which includes the Chairperson. 

5.    Thomas Mathew: New Chairman Of LIC 

i. The government on Friday appointed Thomas Mathew T as the interim chairman of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), as its present chief, D K Mehrotra, retired on 31 May

ii. Mathew holds the position of managing director in LIC since 2006.

iii. Mathew has a little more than 30 years of professional experience in the life insurance sector  and is the senior most person in the institution after D K Mehrotra.

6.    5th Tokyo International Conference on African Development

i. The 5th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V)'s pre-Ministerial meeting was held in Yokohama. 

ii. Conference is being held (1 June to 3 June) with a focus on strengthening partnerships to accelerate the momentum on human development in Africa.

iii. With the theme ‘Hand in Hand with a more Dynamic Africa’, conference will produce a declaration and plan of action to promote peace and stability, robust and sustainable growth, and inclusive and resilient societies across the African continent.

iv. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a co-organizer of TICAD V along with the Government of Japan, the World Bank, the African Union (AU) and the UN Office of the Special Advisor on Africa (OSAA).

NOTE: i. Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) is a conference held every five years in Tokyo, Japan, with the objective to promote high-level policy dialogue between African leaders and development partners. Japan is a co-host of these conferences.

7.    Raghav Joneja youngest Indian to climb Everest 

i. At the age of 15 years and seven months, Raghav Joneja has become the youngest Indian to scale the Mount Everest when he along with his five schoolmates summited the peak and became the youngest team of mountaineers in the world.

ii. Raghav broke the record set by Manipur's Nameirakpam Chingkheinganba, at 16 years seven months and 11 days, as recently as last month, surpassing Arjun Vajpai's feat by a week.

iii. Raghav achieved the remarkable feat on 21st May after embarking on an arduous 56 day-long journey. 

iv. In the process, the team from one of Asia's extant boarding schools, in Kasuali, became the youngest group and the first school team in the world to reach the top of the 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) mountain range.

v. The team now harbours ambitions to scale Seven Summits, the highest mountains of each of the seven continents, which is regarded as a mountaineering challenge.

8.    Russia launches European telecom satellite

i. A Russian launch vehicle carrying an SES-6 telecommunications satellite Monday lifted off from Kazakhstan's Baikonur space centre.

ii. Built by Astrium for global satellite operator SES World Skies on Eurostar 3000 platform, the SES-6 is equipped with 43 C-band and 48 Ku-band transponders and has a service life of 15 years.

iii. The satellite will enable the delivery of next generation broadcast services, including HD video distribution and mobile services, to customers in North America, Latin America, Europe and the Atlantic region, the SES said on its website.

iv. SES-6 will be the 53rd satellite in SES' global fleet.

9.    India Bags 3 Awards At SAARC Film Festival

i. India bagged three top awards including the Best Feature Film, the Best Director and Special Jury Certificate of Recognition at the third SAARC Film Festival in Colombo.

ii. Indian film “Paan Singh Tomar” won the best Feature Film award for its fascinating plot and strong direction.

iii. The Director of the film, Tigmanshu Dhulia was named the Best Director

iv. Kaushal Oza from India received a Special Jury Award for his documentary “Afterglow”. 

NOTE: i. The third SAARC Film Festival was held between this week in Colombo.

ii. Films from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka competed in both Feature and Documentary categories.

10.  Rajeev Shukla resigned as Chairman of IPL

i. Rajeev Shukla resigned as Chairman of IPL on 1 June 2013 in the wake of the raging spot-fixing scandal.

ii. The resignation of Shukla came on the eve of the emergency meeting of the BCCI working committee scheduled to be held in Chennai .

iii. Rajeev Shukla was an Indian journalist, political commentator, television host and the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs and Planning, Government of India.

iv. He is a Member of Parliament since 2000. He serves as secretary of the All India Congress Committee.

11.  Bayern Munich won German Cup 2013 

i. Bayern Munich defeated Stuttgart in the German cup final in Berlin on 1 June 2013 to win the tournament. The final score was 3-2. 

ii. It became the first German team to win the Bundesliga, the European cup and the German cup in the same season.

12.  Indian-American wins Spelling Bee for sixth straight year 

i. Arvind Mahankali from New York has scripted history by winning the Scripps National Spelling Bee for the year 2013, becoming the sixth Indian-American to win the title in a row.

ii. "The words were extremely hard. It means that I am retiring in a good mood," Arvind said immediately after winning the prestigious national championship.

iii. This is the sixth consecutive year that an Indian American has won the prestigious national tournament.

iv. A grade eight student, Arvind, 13, loves maths and science and plans to pursue a career as a physicist.

13.  4th Kabaddi World Cup in November

i. The fourth edition of World Cup Kabaddi will be held in the second half of November, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said on Sunday. Sukhbir

ii. Claiming that strict NADA anti-doping guidelines will be implemented in the tournament and Punjab will seek more participation from countries in Europe, Africa, US, Australia and other sub-continents to give Kabaddi a world class status

iii. "The state government is already taken up this issue with the International Olympic Committee so that efforts can be made to include this game in the 2020 Olympics, besides ensuring the continuation of the traditional game of wrestling."